The Rainbow after the Rain
by Blissful Sorrow
Summary: It's the ultimate battle between Harry and Voldemort, but will Harry be able to see through the rain and survive? [One shot.]


It was raining.

The raindrops splattered on Harry's glasses, making it hard for him to see in the dark and formidable surroundings, but he barely noticed. He was focused on shooting spell after another and dodging the beams of light that were shot almost lazily back in response. Anyone who would have glanced at the pair would have thought they were having a normal wizard's duel, but that wasn't the reality of it at all.

Harry was dueling the darkest, most evil wizard of the time, Lord Voldemort, and they both knew that this was the ultimate battle that would determine which side would win the war – good or evil.

The past few hours had passed by in a blur for the dark-haired teenager. He had set out to find Voldemort himself after Ron had burst into the common room paled, scared, and shaking with the devastating news that there'd been another attack – the third one that month – at the ministry and that his father and several Order members, including Remus Lupin, had been hurt badly.

Harry had felt a dangerous fire of rage boil up within him as soon as he'd heard that news. Mr. Weasley had been nothing but kind and supportive of him, taking him in as one of his own sons when Harry had felt so alone and lost. As for Remus, Harry didn't… no, he _couldn't_ bring himself to even think about his mentor and friend being hurt. The man was the last trustworthy Marauder left, and he'd been the only adult Harry had been able to open up to and embrace as a fatherly figure after the death of Dumbledore and Sirius. Though the deaths of his close ones had left Harry reeling and grieved with the overwhelming feeling of loss and loneliness, Remus had stood by him, always willing to sacrifice himself and do anything for his friend's son. And Harry, though he'd pushed the helping man away at first, being afraid that like everyone else he'd begun to love, his former professor would be taken away from him as well, but eventually, he accepted the unconditional love that the man seemed to have for the boy. They'd shared their feelings of grief and sorrow together, and Harry thought that he'd actually grown closer to Remus than he'd been with Sirius, who he'd loved and looked up to but nevertheless, always seemed to be too unreachable and far away for the pair to have ever shared a true, close, and fatherly bond.

Deep inside, Harry knew what he was doing was practically a suicide mission, but he'd promised himself that he wouldn't let anyone he loved die at the hands of such an unmerciful and heartless killer like Voldemort. In order for his promise to maintain intact, he knew that he had to finish destroying all the Horcruxes so he could kill the good-for-nothing murderer once and for all. He'd kept true to his words and throughout his final year at Hogwarts, he'd succeeded in destroying all the Horcruxes remaining – all but one. He had yet to kill Nagini, and the only way to do that was to find Voldemort. Despite the fact that he had been planning, training, and researching for this day for an entire year, Harry hadn't felt prepared at all. In fact, he felt even more scared than ever. He had left his best friends Ron and Hermione as well as his current love interest Ginny – although he always felt embarrassed in admitting that – at school with a letter just in case he didn't make it out of this alive and left for his quest, telling himself that he'd succeed for Remus, Mr. Weasley, and everyone else he had to fight for.

However, as the duel raged on, Harry couldn't help but feeling despair and a foreboding that it was quite plausible that he wouldn't make out of this alive after all, and that his friends would have to read that letter. Although he had succeeded in killing Nagini, Voldemort had been furious, and he saw a very slim chance of surviving through this ever-tiring duel which didn't seem to exhaust the dark wizard at all.

_Harry plunged the gold and crimson dagger laced with jewels that had helped him so many years ag, in what seemed like another life in Nagini's skull. He watched with a feeling of relief as the snake instantly fell limp and motionless, startling green blood seeping from its fatal wound. He was more appalled, however, at the ominous gray shadow that seemed to burst from the snake, and with a deafening screech that seemed to echo all around them, the shadow evaporated into thin air, leaving no trace of its existence behind. _

_Voldemort let out a shrill scream of outrage, and Harry was forced to drop the sword of Gryffindor as he quickly dodged a beam of green light that was shot at him. _

"_You're mortal now; you're just like any other wizard. There's need for anyone to fear you," Harry taunted, all the while dodging curses. _

_Voldemort's red eyes were slits as he glared menacingly at the courageous, and somewhat reckless, boy in front of him. "What do you mean, boy?" _

"_I destroyed all of your Horcruxes, Voldemort. Or should I call you _Riddle_, now that you're not so invincible and immortal?" _

"_You will pay for this!" Voldemort hissed as his pale face contorted with anger, his voice so snakelike that for a moment, it almost sounded as if he was speaking in Parseltongue. Voldemort shot another bright green beam of light at Harry, and from then on, he was forced to push all stray thoughts out of his mind and concentrate only on battling Lord Voldemort, trying to stay alive. _

He flung himself to his right as another curse narrowly missed his left ear and the cold, cruel voice of Voldemort resounding ominously.

"Come on, Potter, is that the best you can do?"

Harry glared into the red eyes of the intimidating wizard while at the same time, concentrating on keeping his protective shield up and avoiding the curses. One curse, however, sped towards him, and before he was able to move out of the way, it hit Harry with a great force. He gasped, dropping his wand in surprise and pain, and immediately fell to his knees and clutched his side where he felt a warm, sticky liquid oozing out of the gash.

"Awfully sorry about that, did that hurt?" Voldemort threw back his head and laughed maliciously, and when he was done, he stared down at Harry with an eerie menace in his eyes.

"You haven't killed me yet," Harry spat, but he couldn't help but think that he wasn't going to be able to escape so easily this time like he had so many times before.

"Poor Potter, all alone, with no one to help you," Voldemort sneered at Harry, and proceeded to walking around him. "I wonder where your werewolf friend is right now. What about your Mudblood friend and the blood-traitors? Oh, wait… I guess the werewolf isn't exactly in the condition to come and save you now, is he?"

"You foul, slimy git! How dare you?" Harry hissed, glaring at Voldemort with a look of utter contempt and hatred. "I won't let you hurt any of my friends again!"

"Now, there's no need to be so angry with me," Voldemort drawled, looking down at Harry with a nasty look. He looked as dangerous as ever as he leaned down and placed his wand under Harry's chin, forcing Harry to look up into those hateful red eyes. "Don't you think I'm doing him a favor? After all, he could spend some precious time with his dead friends; your parents and Black, of course."

With that, the powerful wizard flicked his wand, and Harry felt an insufferable, painful feeling cursing through his veins. This time, he let out a muffled cry as he struggled against what felt like burning knives twisting into his flesh repeatedly. The curse ended after what seemed like an eternity, but Harry remained on the ground, gasping for breath. Voldemort merely looked down upon Harry, seemingly enjoying the pain that the boy was going through.

'I'm done for,' Harry thought dully as tears of resignation mingled with the rain. Flashes of his life and his loved ones ran through his mind, and with a small, sickening laugh, he noted to himself how it really seemed to be true that before one's death, images of memorable moments in life flashed through their mind.

He thought of Ron and Hermione, his two best friends how had been so faithful and loyal to him until the end, and who had never let him down or left his side no matter what. It pained him to think that he wouldn't be able to spend more time with them, but at least they had each other, and Harry knew they wouldn't grieve over his death too long. They were strong, and would eventually find solace and happiness in each other.

Then, there was Ginny Weasley. Her stunning red hair and freckles never ceased to make Harry's heart stopped each time he saw her, and as he closed his eyes, he could almost envision her standing in front of him with that angelic smile. Their time together had been so short, and he regretted not having been open about his feelings for her throughout all the years at Hogwarts.

He remembered Dumbledore, his former headmaster and the most recent death of a loved one that Harry had watched. He remembered how the professor had chosen to protect Harry instead of himself, just like his parents. His parents, the people whom he had no memories of, but he'd always felt their love protecting and comforting him. Like his parents, Sirius and Remus had always supported him, acting as both a paternal figure and as a friend. Sirius was gone and he'd died to protect him, but Remus wasn't. Harry could still save Remus and protect everyone else from suffering the same fate as so many others had.

A fierce spark of courage shot up in Harry's heart. 'I'm not going to give up now,' he thought doggedly, his eyes now glowing a defiant green once more as he brushed away a few drops of tears. 'I have people who love me, and I'm not letting them down like this. I'm going to fight for them.'

"Saying your last prayers, boy?" Voldemort sneered. "Well then, the Boy-Who-Lived is now no more..." As he lifted his wand to utter the final curses that would end the boy's life, Harry stood up and charged at the wizard with surprising strength left for his injured body. He was going to fight this battle as best as he could without giving up, even if it did result in his death. He would fight because he knew he had people who loved him, who'd give up their lives for him without a single thought, and he would to the same for them. He'd fight because he wasn't going to let them down, and he was going to protect them from this evil that they were all fighting against behind him. Though they weren't there with him physically, Harry knew that if he just turned around, he'd feel the spirit and love of everyone surrounding him, supporting him.

So, as the two wizards dueled again, each fighting for his life, the skies seemed to understand the change of heart that had taken place. Instead of the dark, dreary, cold rain that persisted, the murky clouds parted to let the way for a bright, colorful streak of warmth and light to shine through, and the boy was once again filled with renewed feeling of determination and hope.

After all, there was always a rainbow after the rain.


End file.
